Il Partito Comunista 393

ICP Intervention on immigration distributed at a Rank and File Union demonstration in Rome, Saturday 15 December 2018

For years the living and employment conditions of workers have been deteriorating, subjected to attack by the capitalist class – national and international – which hides its dictatorship over the working class through the false and misleading democratic theater that only serves to turn the puppets that are in the government.

The so‑called “security” decree, recently passed by the right‑wing government, reveals the true face of the ruling class forced to reduce the so‑called “democratic spaces” to divide the working class and repress their struggles. It goes against the struggles of workers, turning roadblocks into criminal offences, punishable by imprisonment of up to 6 years (12 for the organizers), increasing the penalties against the occupants of houses, extending the prohibition of participation in events. At the same time, it attacks the unity between native workers and immigrants, forcing the latter to be illegal, eliminating the humanitarian protection permit, the main channel for regularizing asylum seekers; moreover, it doubles from 3 to 6 months the maximum period of detention in the Stations for Identification and Expulsion and provides for the revocation of the residence permit and also of citizenship to immigrants accused or convicted of certain crimes.

This decree does not serve to reject immigrants but only to make their situation even more difficult and precarious, to make workers more blackmailable and therefore more exploitable, with undeclared work, without contract, without rules, for starvation wages.

The question is not whether to accept or reject immigrants. Immigration from countries devastated by the economic exploitation of imperialist states that produces wars, famine and hunger is an unstoppable process that affects tens of millions of people all over the world and there are no walls or barriers that can stop it.

The central issue for the proletariat is to find unity in the struggle, to unionize immigrant workers, to fight together to overcome any division that may foment downward competition between proletarians, to demand for them the possibility of having a residence permit and citizenship to escape the blackmail of employers.

Combating racist propaganda by opposing it with anti‑racist propaganda on the humanitarian level, as the Church does, is insufficient and can only lead to failure because it means not being able to recognize the true objective of the ruling class, which is not the affirmation of the infamous racist ideology in itself, but its use to divide the working class, keep it oppressed and exploit it more.

Immigrant workers are a “resource” for every national bourgeoisie as long as it manages to exploit them more than it already does with the indigenous ones. But they are also a “resource” for the workers’ movement in general when indigenous workers and immigrants fight together for the same class goals.

The winning ground on which to respond to the attack of the boss and the State is that of the struggle and unity of the workers, above all divisions, for their general class objectives:
 – strong wage increases, greater for the worst paid categories;
 – reduction of working time for the same wage, for the whole working class;
 – full wage to the dismissed workers (not “citizenship income” linked to the acceptance of low‑wage jobs and therefore also useful to lower the average wage);
 – lowering of the retirement age.

These claims, because of their general nature, have an intrinsic political value, which is not that of being against a government of this or that colour but against the entire bourgeois regime. However, they can only be carried out by a strong trade union movement capable of deploying general and extreme struggles.

For this reason it is increasingly urgent and necessary to overcome the division that passes within the grassroots unionism and of which this demonstration is also a result having been called by the Unione Sindacale di Base only! The unity in the struggles of class struggle unionism (in the rank and file unions and in the class currents inside the Confederazione Generale Italiana del Lavoro) would in fact inflict a hard blow to the wall that the masters want to erect to divide the Italian workers from the immigrant ones; it would be the best way to give strength to the authentic class unionism within the grassroots unionism and to defeat its opportunist leaders.

The capitalist economy is on the verge of collapse because of the inevitable crisis of overproduction of goods and capital and the inexorable decline in the profit rate. The only solution available to the bourgeoisie of all countries against the catastrophic blockade of global markets is to unleash a new war, a new world slaughterhouse to destroy excess goods, putting the proletariat of the different states once again against each other. To this end, it is essential for them to return to the nationalist, populist, “sovereign” propaganda that not by chance is beginning to take root in every country and that has among its pillars fear and hatred of foreigners and immigrants.

The importance of the international unity of the workers’ movement is also demonstrated by the movement of the “yellow vests” that in recent weeks has shaken France and that for many false claims would even represent the antechamber of the revolution. In that movement the proletarians are present only individually, they are not framed in their economic organizations, they are not led by their political party. It is true that the resumption of the class struggle, after so many years of counterrevolution and betrayal, can only forcibly pass through spontaneous movements outside any organization, but if the movement of struggle does not give itself a class trade union organization, claiming its proletarian nature, and does not reconnect with the party, it can only fall prey to the bourgeois reaction and the workers will suffer a painful defeat.

This is also why unity among workers in every country and beyond national borders is vital, because it concretely opposes nationalist and patriotic propaganda with the practice of proletarian internationalism, of revolutionary and international struggle, above all frontiers, to break down the regime of capital.

The proletarians have no homeland!

The draft withdrawal agreement between Theresa May’s Conservative government and the European Union, which at the time of writing seems unlikely to get the necessary backing of the British parliament on 11 December, offers no solution to the bundle of contradictions that is Brexit.

Both the ruling Conservative Party and the opposition Labour Party are split on the issue. But we will not waste time on the complex parliamentary arithmetic that makes virtually any solution impossible. Nor with the debates about a possible further referendum, or the legal and constitutional wrangling. Of more interest are the economic factors that have created this impasse.

A substantial part of the British ruling class believed that Brexit was a simple matter of walking through a door and leaving behind regulations which, in its opinion, were holding back the competitiveness of the British economy. This viewpoint, though false, reflected the growing competition and rivalry between the United Kingdom and most of continental Europe, led by Germany, and the misalignment of the economies, as Britain has stayed outside the Eurozone.

The reality is that the UK has not passed through an open door but entered a vast maze of uncertainty that offers no obvious or easy way out.

Since Britain dismantled much of its unprofitable and state‑subsidized heavy industry in the 1980s, its focus has been largely on the services sector, which is largely dependent on selling abroad. This shift was only made possible by inflicting serious defeats on the working class, most notably the steelworkers (1980) and miners (1984‑5).

These developments have helped British capitalism to attract inward investment from many overseas firms wanting to sell into the European Union. This makes the job of extracting Britain from the EU extremely complicated, so there has been stiff resistance from many sectors of big business to any Brexit that would diminish free access to the European single market or to other markets via EU‑negotiated free trade agreements. (Ironically it was Margaret Thatcher who pushed hardest for the single market, though today her nationalist rhetoric is echoed by the Brexiters, who want to withdraw from it, arguing that it benefits Germany more than the UK).

Much of the British economy is intricately interwoven with that of the European Union. To take just one example, as frequently reported in the British press: the crankshaft used to manufacture the Mini (an iconic “British” brand now owned by the German firm BMW) crosses the Channel three times in a 2,000‑mile journey before the finished car rolls off the production line. The same story applies to many other components in the Mini, as well as to components used in other car plants in Britain.

The UK is ranked second for Japanese foreign direct investment and is a major economic partner for Japan. In the automotive sector, Japanese manufacturers such as Nissan and Toyota represent more than 40% of British car output and 142,000 jobs. All of this depends on just‑in‑time delivery and therefore the friction‑less trade of the single market and customs union. Other sectors such as aerospace, scientific research and pharmaceuticals also have a strong pan‑European dimension.

Should Britain leave the EU without a deal, going onto World Trade Organization (WTO rules), as favored by the Brexiters, companies in these sectors are likely to choose to divert future investments to other EU countries.

Meanwhile French and German capital, in order to “protect the integrity of the single market” (i.e. the interests of the national bourgeoisies) have threatened retaliatory action should the UK try to leave and undercut EU capitalism. For example, France has repeatedly threatened border checks to disrupt cross‑channel trade that would potentially turn motorways in Kent, southeast England, into a lorry park. President Macron has also said that France would ignore any British imposition of coastal waters (the fisheries sector, though insignificant in terms of British GDP, has taken on huge emotional significance for embattled Brexiters).

Meanwhile Ireland and France have been working to create new sea crossings to avoid the UK as a land bridge.

And that is just the situation for manufacturing industry and physical trade. Questions also arise over the future of the services sector, and in particular financial services. Although it accounts for just 6.5% of total economic output and 1.1 million jobs, 44% of financial services exports go to the EU and 39% of financial services imports come from the EU. This business also depends on compliance with a whole raft of EU regulations.

Falling EU immigration: a Pyrrhic victory for the populists

These are the considerations behind the May proposal, which effectively ties the UK to EU single market and customs union rules for the foreseeable future, while making some concessions to the pro‑Brexit demands, notably on the free movement of labor.

Immigration was a key factor behind the leave campaign, which was led by populists such as Nigel Farage and backed by capitalists who have little or no stake in the European Union.

In fact, there seems to have been a “Brexit effect” on migration patterns. Figures released by the Office for National Statistics at the end of November showed that net immigration from the EU to the UK slumped to a six‑year low, while non‑EU migration is the highest in more than a decade. There were 74,000 more EU citizens who came to the UK than people leaving for other EU countries. This was the lowest level of EU net immigration since 2012. On the other hand, non‑EU net migration was at its highest since 2004, with 248,000 more non‑EU citizens arriving than departing, the ONS data shows.

The underlying reality of course, that immigration is largely driven by the labor market. The scapegoating of immigrants, along with all other populist arguments, are merely expressions of the inability of capitalism to offer any solutions to economic decomposition (see our article on sovereigntism in Communist Left No 42/3).

Ireland

The current draft withdrawal agreement is therefore a messy compromise to buy the UK time, during a transition period, to negotiate a free trade agreement (FTA) with the EU, while giving it a free hand to negotiate FTAs with other countries and economic blocs, notably the USA (though President Trump has already signaled his unwillingness to do the UK any special favors if the UK agrees to the draft withdrawal agreement. The fact is that the best the UK can hope for at the moment is to piggy‑back off existing EU FTAs).

However, the so‑called Irish backstop could keep the UK tied by single market and customs union rules for the foreseeable future. This is anathema to Ulster Unionists and to Brexiters.

Under the agreement the EU and UK agree to “use their best endeavors” to have a future trade agreement concluded six months before the end of the transition period in December 2020, but that if this is not the case the EU and the UK could “jointly extend the transition period” for an unspecified time.

Otherwise the backstop solution for Ireland and Northern Ireland, aimed at preventing a hard border, would come into force. The backstop, consisting of “a single customs territory between the Union and the United Kingdom”, will apply from the end of the transition period “unless and until… a subsequent agreement becomes applicable”.

The single customs territory would cover all goods except fishery products, the agreement says, and will “include the corresponding level playing field commitments and appropriate enforcement mechanisms to ensure fair competition between the EU27 and the UK”.

There would necessarily be extra non‑customs checks on some types of goods passing between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK, which will not please the Democratic Unionist party.

On exiting the backstop, the agreement says that if “either side considers the backstop is no longer necessary, it can notify the other” setting out its reasons.

Brexiters have consistently argued that Britain must be able to exit any all‑UK customs union as and when it wants to be able to pursue free‑trade deals around the world.

The Need for a Working Class Response

Thus, at the moment none of the options can possibly satisfy the British bourgeoisie. May’s deal has received lukewarm support from the City of London and the bosses’ organization, the CBI, but only on the basis that it is the “least bad” option. Few want to crash out of the EU without a deal. Another referendum would cause more political upheaval, while a complete reversal of the Brexit decision would hand power back to Britain’s economic rivals; the terms for returning to the EU might be worse than they are now.

All of these “choices” must be seen in the context of the global crisis of capitalism and increasing national rivalries. None of the bourgeois parties (whether established parties or populists) can offer a solution that will benefit the working class in any way whatsoever. Any notion that the economic integration or unification of Europe through EU state institutions could serve as the basis for socialism, or alternatively, that there could be a “socialist Brexit” is nothing but rank opportunism. Now more than ever the British working class needs to develop its own class perspective in solidarity with the working class across Europe and beyond. Only then can we benefit from the confusion and discord among our enemies.

The only way out of the Brexit maze is to burn it down, along with the rest of capitalism!

A law nicknamed the “Slavery Act” has passed in the Hungarian Parliament. This law increases the annual overtime that capitalists can impose on workers from 250 to 400 hours a year, or an extra hour a day. In addition, these hours can be paid after three years and no longer within a year as currently. If a worker loses their job sooner, they may not receive overtime pay.

In addition to the slave law, it also weakens collective bargaining by allowing employees and companies to directly negotiate overtime work. The minimum wage in Hungary is €296 per month and for skilled workers it is €388.

The government argues that such “flexibility” will reward companies which invest in Hungary, especially the German car companies, which have many factories there. But of course, Prime Minister Orbán’s ruling party has argued that this law will benefit the workers as those who want to earn more, can work more and will be able to do so “freely”.

The working class, however, began to oppose this law and took to the streets of Budapest on 8 December. Thousands of workers demonstrated to demand an increase in wages and not in working hours. Some demonstrators have worn yellow vests, the symbol of the French demonstrations.

Today, the bourgeoisie, both right and “left”, in all countries, imposes its ruthless dictatorship against the working class. A century ago the proletariat briefly drove the Hungarian bourgeoisie out of power and proclaimed a Soviet Republic and class dictatorship. By organizing itself into strong class unions led by its Communist Party the working class will resurrect its dictatorship.

The recent strike of postal workers in Canada has once again exposed the weaknesses of the present capitalist situation. Logistics, including shipping, warehousing, distribution, and computer systems, is vital in an economy dominated by offshore manufacturing and mail‑order businesses. The month‑long Canada Post strike had such a devastating effect on capital’s ability to move product that the state stepped in to break it. This acknowledgment of workers’ power by the bourgeois state should receive the attention of communists everywhere.

The Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW), with a membership of 50,000, has been in contract negotiations with Canada Post, the state‑owned mail service corporation, since last winter. The negotiations have centered on the significant rise in parcels mailed over the past several years (20 percent between 2016 and 2017 alone), which has drastically increased the workload for postal employees. This has led Canada Post to hire more temporary workers (23.98% of employees and 29.97% of hours in 2017) and to impose mandatory overtime on permanent staff. Overwork has led to an increase in work‑related injuries among postal workers. According to the CUPW, “one out of every 12 workers at Canada Post experienced a disabling injury in 2017”.

With no contract after ten months of negotiations, the CUPW began rotating strikes on October 22. Workers walked out in different major cities on different days over the course of the following month. Though it stopped short of a complete shutdown, the effects of the strike were dramatic. By mid‑November, there were 260 semi‑trailers of undelivered mail at the Toronto processing plant, and over 100 in Vancouver. Canada Post was forced to reject international shipments, and Canada‑bound mail piled up in foreign airports. Slowdowns on days when strikes were not occurring in the different cities prevented the postal service from recovering.

Bleating from capital and its government began immediately, and by the middle of November had reached a feverish intensity. On the first day of the action, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business declared, in biblical terms, that “every time [postal workers] even threaten a strike, more small business customers move to use alternatives, many never returning to Canada post”. The message was clear: form a corporate connection with the bosses or become obsolete. eBay, the middleman for independent sellers who rely on primarily the postal service for shipping, publicly called for the government to ban the strike. Canada Post, in the official press release coinciding with its final contract offer on November 14, warned of “significant impacts to the Canadian retail economy,” and, on top of this, that “charities and not‑for‑profits still use the mail for major fundraising activities”.

The strike’s timing was key to this very welcome disruption. The CUPW announced it on October 16, the day before cannabis was to become legal in Canada. Cannabis sellers, including the state‑run Ontario Cannabis Store, received tens of thousands of mail orders which they could not fulfill, damping the introduction of what is expected to be an economic boom for the country. The strike heated up precisely when businesses and the shipping industry were preparing for the Christmas shopping season.

Under this tremendous pressure from businesses, the Canadian government took action. After Canada Post’s November 14 offer was rejected by the union, Bill C‑89 was read before parliament. It became law on November 26. The strike was officially banned effective the following day, with severe penalties for the union and any union members if they were to continue the action. Rank‑and‑file members could face summary judgements of up to $1,000 per day, union officers $50,000 per day, and the organization $100,000 per day of non‑compliance. Non‑compliance could be construed in nearly any way the government wished. While it maintained the pretense of forcing both the CUPW and Canada Post to comply, the real target was clearly the union. The CUPW called off the strike, while issuing an appeal for protest from the public and other trade unions. Protests occurred at postal facilities across the country, some of which interfered with mail processing.

The Canadian postal strike demonstrates clearly how much impact a relatively mild labor action can have on the economy if it takes place in a vital industry. One can only speculate as to what effects a complete stoppage would have created, and what this would have done for the postal workers’ position. Large parts of the global economy are vulnerable if the workers who connect them take action in their own interests. Logistics workers in Italy, Israel, the United Kingdom, and Germany, among others, have realized this fact and taken action, as we have reported in the past. The bourgeoisie and its governments in every country cannot fail to take notice as well.

The unfortunate lesson of the strike is that wider class support came too late to be meaningful. While effective where implemented, solidarity pickets from members of other unions did not become widespread until after the Canada Post strike had been banned. Unfortunately that was a far cry from solidarity actions across the shipping industry in other countries. This points to a weakness of the CUPW and other unions in its position, namely, that it represents workers of only one firm. By contrast, capital has access to a variety of firms for its every need. Amazon.com, for example, ships through government postal services, commercial parcel carriers, and its own delivery network. Only workers’ unity across and between industries can effectively confront capital on this scale.